UAW leader 'shocked' as Dematic offers to re-open contract talks

GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- Scott Wahlfeldt, president of United Auto Workers Local 1485, wasn't sure what to expect when executives with Dematic North America told him they would have an announcement this week.

But Wahlfeldt said the 246 UAW workers at the once-doomed plant were "shocked" and delighted when the company offered to open bargaining on a renewal of a labor contract that would expire this December.

"I have a large group of people who are excited about the potential to keep their positions," Wahlfeldt said on Thursday, April 27. "They're a proud workforce, they know what they are doing and they know what they are worth."

Fifteen months earlier, company officials announced they would close the manufacturing plant in Grand Rapids by the end of as the company's owners prepared to open a new plant in Monterrey, Mexico.

A lot has happened since then. President Donald Trump has threatened to impose border taxes on companies that ship jobs to Mexico, Dematic was sold to KION Group, a German conglomerate, and business has been booming.

In a conference call with investment analysts last month, executives of KION Group AG said the German company's plant in Grand Rapids gives them an out if Trump carries out his threats.

"After announcing a contemplated relocation in February 2016, we are re-evaluating our global manufacturing footprint due to increased customer demand, capacity considerations and recent ownership changes." Dematic President and CEO John Baysore said in a statement.

"I'm hopeful that the Grand Rapids facility will position itself as a leading competitive choice for our operations, as we would be pleased to retain these manufacturing jobs in Western Michigan."

Wahlfeldt said his bargaining team will negotiate for a contract that offers job security. Given the uncertainty of the past few years, his members have had difficulty obtaining home loans and car loans, he said.

His members are eager to help the company find cost-saving at the Grand Rapids plant as they hammer out the new contract, Wahlfeldt said.

"Personally, I feel that we've been manufacturing in the U.S. for well over 100 years," he said. "We've done it in Michigan. This is something we were born to do. This is something our fathers and grandfathers did."

Uner their current contract, Dematic's blue collar workers start at $13.85 an hour for unskilled positions, Wahlfeldt said. Skilled positions pay up to $22.64 an hour, he said.

Dematic, which make automated warehouse systems, has benefited from the surge in online retailers like Amazon, Wahlfeldt said. The Grand Rapids plant has been operating up to seven days a week on two shifts with a third maintenance shift, he said. Temporary employees also have been brought in, he said.

The offer does not affect some 900 white collar Dematic employees in Grand Rapids who work in sales, engineering, research and development, solution development, customer service, and administration.

Dematic's factory at the corner of Plymouth Road and Michigan Street NE has been a fixture in the Grand Rapids manufacturing scene for more than 75 years.

The company was founded at the Rapids-Standard Company in 1939 when industrialist James R. Sebastian merged his business, Standard Truck Caster Company, with Rapids Manufacturing Company of Grand Rapids. The company's name was changed to Rapistan in 1966.